performance
Americannoun
-
a musical, dramatic, or other entertainment presented before an audience.
-
the act of performing a ceremony, play, piece of music, etc.
-
the execution or accomplishment of work, acts, feats, etc.
-
a particular action, deed, or proceeding.
-
an action or proceeding of an unusual or spectacular kind.
His temper tantrum was quite a performance.
-
the act of performing.
-
the manner in which or the efficiency with which something reacts or fulfills its intended purpose.
-
Linguistics. the actual use of language in real situations, which may or may not fully reflect a speaker's competence, being subject to such nonlinguistic factors as inattention, distraction, memory lapses, fatigue, or emotional state.
noun
-
the act, process, or art of performing
-
an artistic or dramatic production
last night's performance was terrible
-
manner or quality of functioning
a machine's performance
-
informal mode of conduct or behaviour, esp when distasteful or irregular
what did you mean by that performance at the restaurant?
-
informal any tiresome procedure
what a performance dressing the children to play in the snow!
-
any accomplishment
-
linguistics (in transformational grammar) the form of the human language faculty, viewed as concretely embodied in speakers Compare competence langue parole
Other Word Forms
- misperformance noun
- reperformance noun
Etymology
Origin of performance
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The film scored trophies for outstanding motion picture and most of the acting awards, including breakthrough performance, awarded to Miles Caton.
From Los Angeles Times
Her performance - complete with Bjork dressed in the entrails of a blue alien - was one of the most audacious moments of the night.
From BBC
Earlier, Harry Styles had opened the night with a performance of his new single "Aperture", ahead of the much-anticipated release of his new album next Friday.
From Barron's
A controversial red card in both of those games, of course, but the performances were still a mile off what Celtic used to be.
From BBC
"His fitness, he's absolutely dedicated to his craft. He makes the sacrifices. He's all about his fitness and his level of performance."
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
